Portland is off to its worst start since joining MLS and has yet to record a win in 2014, while Salt Lake is the only team in MLS that has yet to lose a game. The Timbers know that getting a favorable result in Salt Lake Saturday will be extremely difficult.

“It’s quite a challenge,” Timbers coach Caleb Porter said. “They are a very good team and they play a system that is unique with a pinched diamond. They’ve been together a lot of years, so there’s a lot of experience in their group in how they play.”

At the beginning of the season, a lot of analysts ranked the Timbers to finish ahead of Salt Lake, who is adjusting to a new coach in Jeff Cassar this year.

But RSL – led by a core group of players that have been together for more than five years – has once again put together a consistent and successful start to the season. On the other side, the Timbers, who have maintained their core group from 2013, haven’t had the same chemistry on the field that they did last season.

“(Real Salt Lake) is an experienced team,” Porter said. “They’ve been together. They know what they’re doing…As a coach, you want a group that takes the field where you know what performance you’re going to get out of guys game in and game out. That’s what we’re striving for here in this club.”

Unlike Salt Lake, which has found success year in and year out with the same group of players, The Timbers have had difficultly maintaining consistency in their lineup this year.

But with the new additions, the Timbers’ chemistry seemed off. Porter removed Fernandez from the starting 11 before the Timbers match against the Seattle Sounders and Portland went on to score four goals in that game. Then last week against Chivas USA, Porter removed Paparatto from the lineup and started 11 players who were all on the Timbers’ roster last season.

Though Porter felt the defense performed better against Chivas, the Timbers are still looking to put together a complete performance on the field.

“It’s on us now to take the good pieces from every single game and put them together in a 90-minute performance,” Timbers captain Will Johnson said. “We’re facing a tough team, no doubt about that, but we still feel that on any given day when we put together that performance we can get points where we need to.”

It will be a challenge, but if the Timbers can put together a good performance in Salt Lake and walk away with points, it could be the catalyst they need to start to shift the momentum of their season.

“That’s the team that put us out of the playoffs last year,” Timbers defender Michael Harrington said. “We want to beat them, but we want to beat every team. Right now, we just want to win and if it comes against Salt Lake, all the sweeter.”

Real Salt Lake became Portland’s nemesis in 2013.

A revamped Timbers squad proved that they could beat any team in MLS last season – except Real Salt Lake. The Timbers went 0-2-2 against RSL in all competitions before falling twice to the Salt Lake in the MLS Cup playoffs championship series.

Salt Lake was also the only team in MLS that beat the Timbers by more than one goal in 2013 – and they did it twice.

“They’ve given us trouble in the past,” Timbers forward Darlington Nagbe said. “So, to go in there at their place and get our first win and play a good game would mean a lot for us and be a good way to get our season going.”

It’s still early in the year, but the Timbers don’t want to continue leaving points on the table as they watch games slip away. They need to start turning things around – soon.

“It’s about the body of work over the course of a 34-game season,” Porter said. “At the end of the day, if you get in the playoffs you have a chance to win it all. It doesn’t matter how you get there, it just matters that you get there.”